Get set for an adventure that marked a new era in America! Film-maker Ken Burns presents the hilarious 1903 saga of the first transcontinental automobile trip. On a visionary whim and a $50 bet, Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson became the first person to drive an automobile across the continent. His arrival in New York City, after every imaginable breakdown and delay, proved that the "horseless carriage" really did have a future.

I spent almost half my life in Lake Co. Oregon, so when I saw that Horatio's drive took him through Lake View Or. I was so excited. My father lives in Paisley, which is part of lake co.,just 45 min. north of Lake View. I bought the DVD for him. What a great film.

This DVD by ken Burns was thoroughly enjoyable. It provided a real life view of the early automobile, and our penchant for racing. The diary of Dr. Horation and his many telegraph letters to his wife of his experiences were insightful of the hardships he faced, but humorous in his effort to assure his wife "things were peachy". The fact that two other car companies decide to join in a "race" was very interesting. And, of course, the distinctive voice of Tom Hanks as Dr. Horatio was excellent. This is a very funny, but factual picture of the automobile circa 1904. It is a worthy purcahes.

This program was just a joy to watch. It is lighthearted, interesting and the letters between Horatio and his wife, Swipes, are so tender and sweet they about bring you to tears....happy tears. In tough times, this was a ray of sunshine.

I had missed this Ken Burns production when it was broadcast in 2004, and am delighted now to see it on DVD. It not only recreates the cross-country drive, on a whim, by Vermont doctor Horatio Nelson Jackson, from San Francisco to NYC, but also incorporates Jackson's photos, taken with a Kodak camera, of towns that he encountered along the way, many inhabited by people who had never seen an automobile. It was an America on the verge of massive transformation, and we share that change. Thanks again, Ken Burns!